A window into the soul of an ordinary man who was an extraordinary witness to the mercy of God in a merciless world.”—Daniel G. Groody, University of Notre Dame

Many years after his death in 1980, the world is still absorbing the witness of Óscar Romero, the archbishop of San Salvador, martyred for his commitment to the poor and social justice. In this work, Michael E. Lee offers a profound reflection on the theological implications of Romero’s life and ministry.

Drawing on Romero’s biography as well as his homilies and other writings, Lee considers specifically how Romero’s witness challenges Christians in the U.S. to reimagine a robust Christian spirituality that is at once a mystical encounter with God and a prophetic engagement in the struggle for justice. In light of Romero’s beatification and pending canonization, Lee reflects on the implications of the archbishop’s recognition as a martyr and on the model of holiness he offers for the wider church today.

Michael E. Lee is associate professor of theology at Fordham University. He is the editor of Ignacio Ellacuría: Essays on History, Liberation, and Salvation (Orbis 2013), and author of Bearing the Weight of Salvation: The Soteriology of Ignacio Ellacuría (Crossroad).